


See the Stars

by lightsinthewater



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Original Trilogy
Genre: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, I'm so sorry, M/M, Sad Ending, i wrote this at 2 am while sobbing, ish, like you have no idea how hard i cried while righting this, no beta we die like men, not realy, skysolo, skysolo fic, sorta - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2020-11-03
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:15:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27368647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lightsinthewater/pseuds/lightsinthewater
Summary: There was a moment of silence, and he could hear Luke take a few shaky breaths. “Han?”“Yeah, Kid?”“I think I’m falling asleep.”
Relationships: Luke Skywalker & Han Solo, Luke Skywalker/Han Solo
Comments: 13
Kudos: 106





	See the Stars

**Author's Note:**

> hi everyone so uhhhh i haven't written anything in like a solid two months so sorry if this is absolute garbage
> 
> enjoy (??)

“Hey, Han? You got a moment?” 

“Yeah, what’s up kid?” Han asked, smiling as Luke blushed at the nickname. 

“I just wanted to see you,” the younger man responded, entering the room fully and flopping onto the bed in the corner of the room. Han got up to sit next to him, a warm feeling flooding his chest as Luke leaned his head down onto his shoulder. 

“So,” Han said, looking down at him. “What do you have lined up today?”

Luke furrowed his brows momentarily.

“Not much,” he responded quietly, picking his head up from Han’s shoulder, not quite meeting his eyes. “Just-” he paused, clearing his throat. “-just a supply run. I’ll be gone for a little bit, but I’ll be back. I promise.”

“Alright. I’ve got a few things to do in comms this afternoon, but after that, I’m free--would you want to, I don’t know...take some speeders out to the forest? There’s a full moon tonight, so it won’t be too dark.” _Because that totally isn’t a date_ , Han scolded himself silently. Luke smiled softly, breathing in slowly.

“Yeah...yeah, I’d like that,” he said, finally locking eyes with the smuggler. “Han…”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t...Just…” he paused momentarily, inhaling slowly. “Take it easy, okay?”

“Okay, kid,” Han laughed, clapping him on the shoulder. “You’re acting weird, is everything alright?”

“Yeah.” The Jedi smiled, tracing his eyes over the bend of Han’s nose, the way his eyelashes curled upwards, the gentle shape of his browbone, and how it blended with the soft lids of his eyes. Memorizing every little curve and crevice. “Everything’s okay.” 

The two of them stayed like that for a while, just taking each other in. Luke smiled, pressing his lips tightly together. If Han knew better, he’d say he was trying not to cry. 

“I should probably get going,” the younger man said quietly. “I’ve got a couple others waiting for me, wouldn’t want to hold them up.”

“Okay,” Han said, smiling. “Be careful, okay?’

Suddenly, the pilot was hugging him, his arms wrapped around his torso, so tight it was as if he’d never let go. 

“...Kid?” He whispered, but Luke shook his head vigorously. Han slowly embraced him in return, resting his chin atop the younger man’s head. He could feel Luke’s hands shaking, and concern clouded his mind. “Hey,” he said firmly, leaning back and gently taking the Jedit by the shoulders. “Whatever’s going on, you can tell me when you get back. It’ll be alright. I swear."

Luke nodded, smiling. “Right.” 

“Sounds good,” Han said, grinning. He clapped the pilot on the shoulder, standing up and walking to the door with him. Luke turned to go but glanced back at him one more time. 

“Don’t do anything stupid while I’m out.”

“You know that I will,” Han smirked, and Luke laughed, nodding.

“Yeah, I do…” he glanced down at the floor, smiling slightly. “Bye, Han.”

“Bye, Kid. See you tonight.”

Luke just smiled, taking Han’s hand briefly before dropping it and retreating down the hallway. 

The smuggler glanced down. He could still feel the warmth of Luke’s palm in his. He felt his face flush red and cleared his throat before sitting back down at his desk and fiddling with an old hologram projector to pass the time until his next meeting. 

***

Han glanced up from his datapad as the comm unit on his desk buzzed. Flipping it over to reveal the screen, he read the message displayed on its surface. 

> _Communications. Now. Emergency._

It was from one of the technicians he had talked to earlier, Jen. He plucked his jacket off the back of his chair and made his way down the crowded halls to Communications, narrowly dodging a frantic nurse dashing towards medbay. He entered the room and his heart halted in its tracks as he saw Leia and several others clustered around a display. 

“What…”

“Han,” Leia murmured, steering him away from the group momentarily. “There’s been...an incident.” He clenched his jaw. “He didn’t tell me,” she continued, closing her eyes momentarily. “That he wasn’t just going on a supply run.”

“ _No_ ,” Han said quietly. 

“He went to Corellia to look into a lead about a missing pilot,” she sighed, and the smuggler’s hands shook. “There was…a run-in with some stormtroopers.” 

“ **_No_** ,” Han repeated, more a plea than anything else. 

“We’ve...we’ve got him on the line, but something’s wrong--he’s not talking much, just-” Han pushed her aside, striding quickly over to the console and snatching a headset off the table. “Han-”

“Kid, can you hear me?”

Silence. 

Han’s throat started to constrict. 

“Kid, _please_ ,” he said, voice straining. 

“Hey, Han,” came the muffled response. _His_ voice. _Luke’s_ voice.

“Kid,” Han breathed, relief budding in his chest. “Are you okay?”

“It’s cold here,” Luke responded. Han could hear the quiver in his voice. 

“What do you mean it’s cold, it’s the middle of summer th-” Han could see Leia’s head snap up in his peripheral vision, and nearly dropped the headset, thinking back to the brief medical training he’d had when he was younger. 

_One of the most prevalent symptoms of blood loss is an absence of heat in the extremities._

“Luke, have you been--have you been hit?"

“I think so...it hurts, Han, they had these weird slugthrowers, and I-” he trails off, and Han can hear a clatter as Luke drops the comm unit. 

_Nonononononono-_

“Luke, can you hear me?” 

Nothing.

“Kid, please-”

“Han, have you ever noticed how many stars we can see at base? There aren’t many here. I can’t see them.”

“It’s because of the city lights,” the smuggler replied, voice shaking. “Too much light pollution.” 

“Oh.” a pause, and then, “I wish I could see the stars right now.”

“You and I can look at them when you get home, okay?”

“Han, I don’t-”

“And the moon,” he continued adamantly, gripping the edge of the table like a lifeline. “It’s full tonight, we...it’ll be so bright. You always liked the full moon.”

“Yeah,” Luke said weakly. “Han, I’m so tired…”

“Luke, please, you can’t go to sleep, don’t-” Han shut his eyes tightly, a tear sliding down the bridge of his nose. “Kid, can you do me a favor?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

“Can you find the moon?”

“It’s to my right,” Luke answered, groaning quietly. 

“Ok. You can see it?”

“Yeah…” the younger man said. Han could hear the pain in his voice. Swallowing thickly, he peered through a small nearby window at the round, silvery planetoid casting a pale light on the tops of the trees surrounding the base. 

“I’m looking at it too,” he said gently, knowing it wasn’t the same moon, but that didn’t matter right now. “We’re looking at it together.” Luke laughed softly, but it quickly dissolved into a quiet whimper.

“I feel...dizzy.” 

“Can you take some deep breaths for me?” the older man asked, a few more tears slipping down his cheeks. He listened as Luke struggled to inhale, drawing several shallow breaths that were no doubt painful. 

“...Han?”

“I’m here.”

“That’s good….” Luke sighed, and Han could hear him shift and moan in pain again. His heart seized at the sound. _Luke was hurt. And alone, somewhere on Corellia. And there was nothing he could do about it._ “You--I...can you keep talking? It’s better when I can hear your voice.” 

Taking a deep breath, Han pushed a shaking hand through his hair, wracking his brain for something, _anything_ to say. 

“I was thinking about the day we were on Naboo earlier this morning,” he started softly. “You-” He let out a shaky laugh. “-you had never seen so much green. You started running around in that field, and I--I had never seen you so happy. Gods, Kid, you took off _sprinting_ towards that forest…” Han smiled tearfully, his heart warming as he recalled the memory. He closed his eyes as Luke let out a breathy laugh. “I think that’s when I knew that you weren’t--you weren’t like anyone I’d ever met.”

“Han…”

“You just ran and ran and ran, trying to see as much of it as possible. You got mud all over your clothes, and Leia had a fit when we got back, but it was worth it.” he paused, more tears slipping down his cheeks. “It was so worth it.”

“Han,” Luke stammered, his voice tight. “I need to tell you, I-”

“Don’t,” Han interrupted, shutting his eyes tightly. “Just...just tell me when you get back, okay?”

“...Okay.”

“Do you remember that afternoon when we first met? You were so worried about the Falcon,” Han continued, laughing quietly. “You called it junk, but you--you trusted me. To get you off that planet. For some reason. I’ll never know why, but...you trusted me. Thank you for that.”

“You and your stupid vest…” Luke muttered, drawing a small chuckle from Han’s lips. 

“You know you like it,” Han joked, smearing tears across his face with his sleeve. 

“Yeah, I do….” there was a moment of silence, and he could hear Luke take a few shaky breaths. “Han?”

“Yeah, Kid?” 

“I think I’m falling asleep.”

Han’s heart seized in his chest. _No_ , he thought, starting to panic. _Not now. Not yet. Please, not yet._

_Not like this._

“Kid, I’m gonna need you to stay with me, okay? Stay with me.” _Please._

“It’s so dark here, and it’s cold…Han, I’m...I’m scared, I don’t-”

“It’ll be alright,” Han said gently, wishing he could be there, to hold Luke’s hand, hug him, _anything_. “Everything’s going to be ok. You’re ok...you’re ok.” 

_Maybe if he said it enough it would be true._

“Oh, look,” Luke murmured. “I can see the stars.” 

There was a clatter of the comm unit being dropped, and then silence.

“KID!” Han yelled, frantic. “No, Luke, please, don’t do this…” he slumped against the wall, leaning on it for support. “Stay with me, please…”

Nothing. 

_He knew_ , he thought as he stared at the ground through teary eyes. _He knew he might not come back. That’s why he came to see me this morning. He knew._

He stood there, trembling, feeling the weight of Leia’s teary eyes on his shoulders. 

Stumbling, he dashed out of the room and into the hangar, brushing past friendly waves and casual greetings from pilots and the like. 

Han made his way to the Falcon, tripping up the hallway to Luke’s room and freezing in the doorway. Slowly, he entered the space, gently sitting down on the bed, clutching the blanket to his chest. He breathed in slowly and let the scent of it wash over him; engine fuel and lavender and the faintest hint of leather. _From stealing my jackets all the godsdamned time_ , Han thought. He sat like that for a while, just breathing, tears making tracks down his cheeks as they fell onto the mattress below him. He could hear people looking for him. He didn’t care. 

He glanced up at the small bookshelf above Luke’s bed and smiled as he reached out and carefully plucked a small necklace off the surface. It was a simple silver chain, with two circular pendants dangling from it. Twin suns, for Tattooine. Luke’s home. Although he knew that planet never really was home for him. A cage, really. Home was where you belonged, and Luke...Luke didn’t belong on Tattooine, living on a godsdamned moisture farm. He belonged here. On the Falcon. With Han. 

_Home._

Slowly, he slipped the necklace over his head and tucked it into his shirt. The metal was cold against his skin, and Han couldn’t help but think about what Luke had said

_It’s so dark here._

_It’s cold._

_I’m scared._

He hadn’t been there. He should have been there. Luke had been alone, and scared, and on an unfamiliar planet. And it was all Han’s fault. He should have noticed that Luke was acting weird, should have made him admit what he was going to do, _shouldhaveshouldhaveshouldhave-_

“I’m so sorry, Kid,” Han whispered. “I’m so sorry.” he felt a pang in his chest at knowing Luke would have scolded him for apologizing, would have told him it was okay, would have said that there was nothing he could have done. He exhaled shakily, relinquishing his grip on the necklace and falling backward, resting his head on Luke’s pillow. 

Taking a deep breath in, Han stared up at the ceiling, letting his tears spill from his eyes and onto the pillowcase. He felt a warm presence at his side, and glanced down, but found nothing but crumpled blankets. He had never been one to believe in the force, and Luke knew that. But he couldn’t push away a feeling of not being completely alone. So, he spoke to whatever was there. 

“Kid...I don’t--I don’t know what to do. Stars, I’m so mad at you, why-” he bit back tears, clenching his jaw. “-why didn’t you tell me?” the last part was strained, nearly silent as the smuggler’s throat grew tight with emotion. “And I know that’s not fair of me, you always have your reasons, that’s for sure, but...I would have gone with you, you know. Even to the end.”

Something that could have been a kiss brushed against his forehead. 

“Especially to the end.” 

  
  


_That night I put my youth in a casket_

_And buried it inside of me_

_That night I saw through all the magic_

  
  
  


_Now I'm a witness to the death of a hero_

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> ......
> 
> oops
> 
> come yell at me on tumblr: https://skysolorights.tumblr.com/  
> kudos and comments feed my huge ego  
> thx for reading! xx


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